Vegan spinach pesto // Pesto d'épinards végétalien

11:44
Gaelle So
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Pesto, a big italian classic, that you can develop in so many ways. Traditional pesto is made with basil, but there's heaps of delicious different recipes using other herbs. And even vegetables! Ive already shared my recipe for Capsicum/peppers pesto with cashews last year (gosh, time goes fast..). Today, we're blending spinach to get a delicious creamy pesto.In this vegan version, I chose to use Nutritional yeast flakes. 'WTF is that?' some will ask... Well, it's nutrients (B vitamins, iron...) rich little flakes, usually found in organic shops, or healthy/organic aisles of your supermarket. Sprinkle some on your salad, sauces, veg' bakes... it has an amazing savoury flavour, almost "cheesy". Yes, cheesy. A lot of vegan-diet followers use it in recipes to give a "cheesy flavour".So here in this pesto recipe, it does give a great flavour, of course not exactly like the traditional parmesan, but we're getting close!Spread on your wraps, sandwiches, add to your pasta, dip in your homemade crisps....

Ingredients2 big handfuls of young spinach leaves1 tbsp whole almondsjuice of half a lemon2 tbsp nutritional yeastsalt, pepper1/4 cup olive oilToast the almonds for 2 minutes in a dry hot pan, to improve the flavour and get them slightly golden.Put all the ingredients (apart from the olive oil), in the bowl of a food processor, and start blending, adding the oil little by little, until getting a nice "creamy pesto". Season with salt and pepper, and transfer to a glass jar. Cover with a thin layer of olive oil. The pesto will keep in the fridge for a few weeks.

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10:42
Gaelle So
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For those moments you need an extra energy kick, these energy bars are awesome. Packed with healthy natural ingredients (compare this list of ingredients with the one of energy/muesli bars you can find in shops...), a little slice of this peanut butter cranberry delight will give you energy before sports, or as a mid-morning or afternoon snack, and help you survive until lunch or dinner. These bars are naturally sweetened with dates and cranberries, which will also help everything "hold together".

This recipe can be made "raw", by placing the tray in the freezer for 30 minutes (have a look at this recipe on the great resourceful blog Nutritionist in the Kitchn)

Put all the ingredients in a food processor, and blend until all combined (don't blend too much if like me, you want a few chunky bits of cranberries and almonds).

Line a square baking dish with baking paper. Transfer the mixture to the dish, and press it down firmly with your fingers (if you don't want it to stick yo your fingers, wet your hands a little bit with cold water.

Place the dish in the oven for 10 minutes, until just golden. Let it cool in the dish, then cut in bars, the size of your choice.

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09:51
Gaelle So
1 Comments

Looking for a new side vegetable dish ? I'm not saying that traditional mash potatoes are boring, it's a big classic that you can pare with so many things. But have you tried it on the sweet side? I don't mean as a dessert, but using sweet potato in place of the "normal" potatoes. Give it a shot, you won't be disappointed. I recommend cooking the sweet potatoes in the oven, for 30 to 40 minutes depending on the size, whole. It gives it an amazing flavour, much more interesting that if you'd just boil them in water. And when you think about it, it doesn't take that much time either, as this mash will only take roughly 5 minutes "hands on" to make : the rest of the magic happens in the oven.For a Middle eastern flavour, as I was having this mash with spicy lentil vegetarian "meatballs" and some minty cucumber dip, I added a little hint of cinnamon, that amazing roasted garlic and drizzled with pomegranate molasses just before serving. You could also go for other spices, like smoked paprika, or a few sprigs of fresh thyme.

You can roast a few garlic bulbs instead of just the 4 cloves needed for this recipe : after roasting, peel the cloves, and keep them in an airtight container in the freezer for a few months. They'll be a handy flavourful addition to your next hummus, dips, sauces, soups....

Ingredients3 medium sweet potatoes4 cloves garlic3 tbsp olive oil1/4 cup almond milk (or other milk)1/2 tsp cinnamonsalt, pepper1 pinch of chili powder1 tbsp pomegranate molasses, to servePreheat the oven to 200'C.Cut a little piece of baking paper, place the garlic cloves in the middle, add 1 tbsp of olive oil, and close the paper, like a pocket, to wrap the cloves in.Using a fork or a knife, pierce a few holes on the skin of the sweet potatoes, and place them on a baking tray, along with the wrapped garlic cloves, and roast for 30 to 40 minutes (depending on the size on the sweet potatoes : check if it's cooked with a knife or fork : it should go in and out of the potato smoothly).Once cooked, let the sweet potato cool for 5 minutes, until you can handle them. Peel the garlic cloves. Peel the sweet potatoes, or cut in half and scoop the flesh out of the skin with a spoon. Place the flesh in a saucepan, along with the milk, the rest of the olive oil, garlic cloves, salt and pepper, and cinnamon, and turn the heat on low. Mash everything using a potato masher or a whisk, until getting a smooth purée. Serve, drizzled with some pomegranate molasses and a pinch of chili.

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Pear and blueberry clafoutis // Clafoutis aux poires et myrtilles

11:00
Gaelle So
2 Comments

Need a quick recipe for a fruity dessert? Clafoutis is the way to go!

You can make this traditional french dessert from a lot of different fruits, go with seasonal fruits, though the most common is cherry clafoutis. My favourite one has to be mirabelle (which is a beautiful little yellow plum, juicy and sweet). A clafoutis is very easy to make : grab some fresh fruits, make a "custard" with eggs, milk (or a mix of milk and cream), sugar and flour, and there you are : a beautiful puffy, spongy dessert. Make it in a large baking dish, or in little individual ramequins. Did you know you can even make a savoury clafoutis? I'll have to remember to share with you my cherry tomatoes and goats cheese clafoutis recipe when we get to summer... delicious!I was looking for a way to use up a few pears I had that were starting to go soft, and came across that pear and blueberry recipe on the blog Two Purple Figs, which I adapted with my own basic clafoutis-mix recipe. You can swap the cinnamon for some vanilla, or replace some of the flour with ground almonds.

Ingredients1 tsp butter, to grease the dish1 tbsp white sugar3 eggs3 pears2 tbsp blueberries25 g flour3 tbsp brown sugar1/2 tsp cinnamon250 ml milk100ml creme fraichepinch of saltPreheat the oven to 180'C.Grease a baking dish with the butter, then sprinkle the white sugar all around.Peel (or not!) and slice the pears, and place them in the dish in a uniform layer, along with the blueberries.In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the sugar, until it becomes pale and fluffy. Add the flour, cinnamon and pinch of salt, and whisk again. Finally, add the milk and creme fraiche. Pour this batter over the fruits, and bake for 20 minutes. The batter will puff up, and the top has to be golden brown. Serve warm or cold.

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11:36
Gaelle So
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Chocolate loves berries. Berries love chocolate. This is a fact you just can't deny.

These little brownie bites are slightly crisp on the outside, fudgy and sweet in the middle with that blackcurrant jam heart.

I used a mini-muffin mould for this recipe, but you could definitely use a large muffin one, or even a square one to make a big brownie to share (or not!). You might just have to adapt the cooking time, depending on the size of your tin.Feel free to replace the blackcurrant jam with other berry jams, like raspberry, strawberry, mixed berry... or even some fresh berries (blueberries would be a winner there!).

Preheat the oven to 170'C. Prepare a baking tin with baking paper.Melt the chocolate and butter in a bain-marie or double boiler (by placing a heatproof bowl on top of a saucepan with water, the water should not be touching the bowl). Remove from the heat.In another bowl, beat sugar and eggs by hand or with electric beaters until pale, creamy and frothy. Fold in the chocolate mixture. Add the flour and cocoa, and stir until just combined. Pour about 1 tbsp the brownie mix in each hole of the mini-muffins tin, drop 1/4 of tsp of jam in the centre, cover with tiny bit more brownie mix and bake for 10 minutes. Leave to cool on a wire rack.

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10:26
Gaelle So
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I'm not the biggest snacking person. I do sometimes, eat between meals, but try to go for a little slice of cheese, some nuts, or a fruit. (and occasionnaly some chocolate, of course, but shhhhh!)

But Oh gosh, those crackers are sooo good and addictive. A nice little spicy kick, the crunchy-cripsy with the chia seeds, and the great smooth, yet strong enough flavour of the cheese.Those crackers are actually not just normal chili and cheese crackers like it says on the title.Let me explain. I used two very special ingredients that make them really special. I used Piment d'Espelette, which is a kind of pepper/chili grown in the South West of France, in the Basque Country. It has an AOC, which is a french quality label for regional foods. It has a really unique and typical flavour, and is best used as a flavouring spice than just for the "heat" of traditional chili (it has a mild heat).The second special ingredient in this recipe is Ossau Iraty, a sheep's milk cheese made in that same region, the Basque Country. It is quite strong in taste, so if you're more of cheddar-eater, be aware.Of course, you can use cheddar, emmental or Comte instead of the Ossau Iraty in this recipe, and other chili powder instead of the Piment d'Espelette (I'm sure it would be amazing with Chipotle powder!).Those crackers are easy to make, only 5 ingredients and roughly and hour time for a big box of roughly 40 crackers!

Ingredients150 g flour150 g grated cheese (Ossau Iraty, Comté, Cheddar...)80 ml olive oil1 tbsp chia seeds1 tsp Piment d'Espelette (or other chili powder)In a food processor, blend all the ingredients together for about 1 or 2 minutes, adding 1 or 2 tbsp or water until it comes together. Form a ball of dough. Divide in 2, and form 2 cylinders of approximately 20 cm long, and 4 cm diameter. Wrap in cling film or baking paper, and place in the freezer for 20 to 30 min.Preheat the oven to 180'C. Prepare a baking tray with baking paper.Take the cracker dough cylinders out of the freezer, unwrap, and cut in 0.5cm slices all along. Place the slices on the baking sheet, leaving a little bit of space between each.Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until nice and golden. Leave to cool on a wire rack, then store in an airtight container.

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Lemon and blueberry cake // Gateau au citron et myrtilles

11:31
Gaelle So
0 Comments

Soft like a cloud, delicate lemon flavour, juicy and sweet blueberries, this cake is pure heaven. It's one of those recipes that I tested a long time ago, wrote down in one of my notebooks, and that I keep making over and over again. Yes, it is that good. And quick to make too. I made this one for dessert last night : 10 minutes to prepare, 25 minutes in the oven, done. You can also double up the recipe, use a proper round cake tin and make a beautiful layer cake, with some whipped cream or a tangy lemon cream cheese frosting.It is very good by itself, but would be wonderful with a dollop of creamy greek yogurt.

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11:56
Gaelle So
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Take a bite, and get transported to France. This is one of those desserts that really reminds me of all the sweet things we have in France. Such a diversity of cakes, tarts, biscuits, desserts, in each region, and for each season. A lot of people abroad, are amazed at how French people manage to stay slim with all that butter we eat, as well as patisserie, desserts, cheese... (see the famous book French Women don't get fat). As I've been living in different countries where food culture and habits are really different, I can now understand better what is so particular to our way of eating in France. First, it's all about portion control. We don't overload our plates. Second, we take time : time to cook, and time to eat. I've talked about our 2 hour lunch break (most of the time) to some english colleagues, and they couldn't believe we had so much time for lunch and were wondering what the hell we would be doing for 2 hours. Well, go home, if possible, cook a nice meal, or go to a park and enjoy a nice pique-nique, relax in the sun, or read a book, or go to a local bistro and enjoy a cheap 3 courses Menu du jour. A big difference as well, is that most of the time in France, we have bigger lunches than dinners, which makes sense, as you spend the energy you "eat" for lunch in the afternoon, and you shouldn't be overfeeding in the evening, as you won't be moving that much.In France, (I believe and hope), still a lot of people make food at home, often from scratch, with fresh ingredients, and eat a lot of seasonal fruit and vegetables.And, yes, we do eat a lot of cheese, use a lot of butter, and sometimes eat desserts and patisserie. But again, its all about balance. We won't eat profiteroles, chocolate mousse or tart everyday. It will be maybe a weekly treat that we enjoy. So if you do feel like a little typical sweet french treat, this tart will really please your tastebuds. Pears, almonds and that thin layer of chocolate make a perfect fruity yet gourmand(I still haven't found the perfect translation for that French word in english...) dessert.

Of course you can can ready-made pastry, but honestly, I don't see the point. Make you own pastry is way cheaper, it only takes 5 ingredients you always have on hand, and it takes less than 5 minutes to make. You could even make it in bulk, and freeze some for later!

IngredientsSweet pastry250 g flour125 g butter, soft2 tbsp sugar50 ml cold waterpinch of saltAlmond cream80 g butter, soft80 g sugar80 g whole almonds, or almond powder2 eggs2 pears60 g chocolate (milk or dark)For the pastry :In a bowl, mix flour, salt , sugar and butter with your fingers, until it looks like little crumbs, like for a crumble mix. Slowly add the water and stir to form a bowl of dough. Place n the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.Preheat the oven to 180'C.Melt the chocolate in a "bain-marie" (bowl over a pot of boiling water), set aside.Roll the pastry and transfer to a tart tin, buttered or prepared with baking paper Prick the pastry with a fork. Bake blind for 10 minutes. (TIP! You don't have to own special baking beans or use normal dried beans to cookyour pastry blind. I cover my pastry with another layer of baking paper, then place a smaller "light metal" tart tin on top. You can also use old golden coins instead of baking beans, as they transfer the heat really well too.)While the pastry is baking, make the almond cream. To make your own almond powder : in a dry pan, on medium heat, toast the almonds for about 2 minutes, stirring regularly, to develop the flavours. Transfer to a food processor and pulse for a minute, to get almond powder. Do not process too long, or you'll end up with almond butter.In a bowl, whisk butter and sugar together, until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, then add the almond powder.Peel and slice the pear in thin slices in the length.After 10 minutes of blind baing, take the pastry out of the oven. Spread the chocolate all over, then the almond cream, and place the pear slices on top. Bake for another 35 to 40 minutes, until the almond cream is cooked and set, and golden.